The Dark Army
by Elliryanna
Summary: Set fifteen years after the movie. The Guardians have succeeded in driving Pitch away, but it would only be a matter of time before he has gained enough power to bring harm to the children. Now, a new Guardian has been chosen, but Pitch has created a new army of his own and has other plans for her... Includes hints of JackxTooth. (My first fanfiction!) Rated T due to paranoia.
1. Prologue- Return of the Nightmare King

**The Dark Army**

**Summary: **Is Pitch Black really gone for good? What if he comes back, more powerful than before, with a new army of darkness, one that the Guardians had never expected? What if a new Spirit is chosen to be a Guardian, but had become one of Pitch's allies? How will the Guardians convince her to join them instead? My first fanfiction!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians or The Guardians of Childhood.

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**Prologue: Return of the Nightmare King**

A forest Spirit, also known as a Dryad, bounded through the jungle that she had called home, enjoying the sense of freedom she felt. The Nightmare King was finally defeated in the Battle of Belief and all the Spirits, or at least those who wished for peace, were rejoicing at the continuation of the Golden Age, and they owed it to the Guardians, who had fought bravely for them all. Smiling, the Dryad leapt over some bushes and continued running, the cool night wind buffeting her chlorophyll-tinged face. Free, at last, from the clutches of evil.

Or so she thought.

Her surroundings grew increasingly darker. The change was so gradual that the Spirit did not even notice the growing darkness. Then the air grew extremely hot and humid, almost intolerable, like a volcano on the verge of erupting. The Spirit stopped running and tensed. She could sense a sinister presence but could not zero on it for some reason. It kept on flitting around, concealing itself from her in the shadows. The Spirit thus summoned her whip made of vines. "Who's there?" she yelled, hoping to intimidate whatever it was in the darkness.

Silence. Then she could feel something like sand crawling up her leg, rapidly rising to her thighs and waist. She looked down and gasped in horror and fear. Nightmare sand! But how? The Nightmare King was gone since the Battle of Belief. Panicking, the Spirit swatted at it and tried to get rid of the vile substance as it continued climbing up her body, finally reaching her face.

At this point, the Dryad was properly frightened. She screamed, hoping for someone –anyone- to hear her as the sand engulfed her whole being. Not just her physical body but also her life, soul, memories, dreams, hope and happiness, leaving only a hollow husk of evil, jealousy and anger that what was once the forest Spirit. The last thing she heard was the familiar maniacal laugh of the Nightmare King.

Then silence. The Forest Spirit was gone, replaced by a ghostly shadow that knew nothing but violence, death and destruction.

No one knew what had exactly happened to the lively Spirit but one thing was sure. Pitch Black, the King of Nightmares had returned.


	2. Chapter 1- Impending Trouble

**The Dark Army**

**Summary: **Is Pitch Black really gone for good? What if he comes back, more powerful than before, with a new army of darkness, one that the Guardians had never expected? What if a new Spirit is chosen to be a Guardian, but had become one of Pitch's allies? How will the Guardians convince her to join them instead? My first fanfiction!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians or The Guardians of Childhood.

**Author's Notes:** Thanks to** The Shadow Gryphon** and **Apollo Holmes** for reviewing the prologue! I may not update that often because of school and other stuff.

To Apollo Holmes: Please teach me how!

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**Chapter I: Impending Trouble**

The Guardians were doing their rounds.

Toothiana, or Tooth, best known as the Tooth Fairy, was at Punjam Hy Loo, her palace, commanding her miniature fairies to collect teeth from the children all over the world. Colourful hummingbird-like fairies were flitting all around Tooth, fetching teeth, arranging them and putting them in their respective gold tooth boxes. All was well ever since the King of Nightmares was defeated by her and her fellow Guardians.

Until she saw the aurora borealis in the night sky, near the arctic region.

"What's wrong…?" Tooth wondered before zipping towards the North Pole, but not before making sure that her fairies still continued with their duties. The aurora borealis was a signal from a fellow Guardian whenever something or someone was in trouble. For some reason, the Guardian of Memories could not help but feel that something big was about to happen as she flew towards the arctic region hastily along with a few of her fairies, including Baby Tooth, one of her favourites.

* * *

E. Aster Bunnymund was overseeing his Easter eggs as they went around his Warren to get polished and coloured. The Easter Bunny walked around his home, decorating it with the various colours of spring out of boredom. Hey, a home needs to be pretty, right? Easter was a few months away and he had to be ready to deliver his eggs to the children from all over the world. No pressure.

Then he saw the aurora borealis in the sky. Trouble was afoot. That, he could tell. "What did ya do this time, North?" Bunny grumbled before setting the course of his tunnel towards the North Pole.

* * *

Sanderson Mcsnoozie, the Sandman, was currently in north Europe, giving the children sweet dreams as they slept. The silent Guardian sent his golden Dreamsands to do their work, coiling and entwining gracefully towards the sleeping children before entering their minds and taking the shape of whatever they were dreaming about, whether it was a unicorn or butterfly or anything else the child could dream of.

A sudden wave of light could be seen far up north.

Upon seeing that, he Sandman quickly created a Dreamsand aeroplane for himself before setting out towards North's workshop. He was sure that North would not call them for an urgent meeting unless there was a great deal about something. For example, Pitch Black. The Sandman shuddered at the thought of the Nightmare King returning to engulf the world in darkness.

* * *

Jack Frost was also interrupted in the middle of his duties by the aurora borealis. Well… If creating snow days and playing with children was considered as a 'duty'. The winter Sprit flew around Burgess, throwing snowballs at random children and getting them into the spirit of fun and games. The Guardian of Fun yelled in glee every time one of his snowballs successfully hit a child. He made the window panes of houses covered in frost and made a light snow fall, occasionally nipping a child's nose and making it numb with cold. In a nutshell, the Guardian was having a whale of a time frosting things.

The aurora borealis caught his eye, making Jack feel inquisitive as well as worried. This was the first time in so many years that a Guardian called for an urgent gathering. Probably a new threat has arisen. Jack could not stand at the thought of Pitch Black returning.

Clearing his thoughts, the winter Spirit called for the Wind to take him to the Pole.

* * *

St. Nicholas North paced the length of the entrance of his workshop, waiting for the other Guardians to arrive. He needed them to come- immediately- for he had some alarming news to share with the Guardians. The Spirits from all over the world had been rapidly disappearing for some reason. Nothing good, he would bet. Brows furrowed, the Russian man known as Santa Claus awaited for the arrival of his fellow Guardians.


	3. Chapter 2- The Gathering

**The Dark Army**

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**Summary: **Is Pitch Black really gone for good? What if he comes back, more powerful than before, with a new army of darkness, one that the Guardians had never expected? What if a new Spirit is chosen to be a Guardian, but had become one of Pitch's allies? How will the Guardians convince her to join them instead? My first fanfiction!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians or The Guardians of Childhood.

**Author's Notes: **I really appreciate the review by **Apollo Holmes** for the first chapter! It makes me want to continue on with the story! Thanks a bunch! The next chapter will be back to Pitch where he will carry on with his plan to dominate the world, so stay tuned!

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**Chapter II: The Gathering**

Toothiana was the second to reach the workshop. That was surprising, as she was part hummingbird flying at top speed. She zoomed into the entrance of the workshop, so fast that she became a multi-coloured blur, and called North's name, as the Guardian of Wonder was nowhere to be seen. Not looking where she was going, the Tooth Fairy barreled straight into Jack Frost in the main chamber of the workshop.

Both Guardians tumbled over one another through the air, trying to keep themselves aloft but to no avail. They landed with a loud thump, which was made louder with a yelp from Tooth and a shout from Jack, on the polished floor. Tooth was in an awkward position where she was sitting on Jack's chest, one of her feet planted squarely on his face. Jack let out a muffled groan while trying to untangle himself from the dizzy female Guardian.

And that was when Bunnymund chose to pop out from his tunnel.

Imagine the look of surprise and bewilderment when the Easter Bunny laid his eyes on the Guardians sprawled on the ground, trying furiously to untangle themselves off each other and not have anyone, save the elves and yetis in the workshop, to notice them like that. Then the surprised expression on Bunny's face turned into an amused smirk. "What are ya both doing?" he demanded, though his amused smile was still plastered on his face.

Tooth blushed scarlet, her eyes unable to meet with any of her fellow Guardians'. "Bunny! I-um-we…." She blushed even harder. Luckily for her, Jack was quick to come with an answer. "We were just practicing by flying fast, to train our reflexes in combat. Just in case you-know-who comes back," he said, referring to the Nightmare King for the last part.

"Humph." Bunnymund obviously did not buy that. He gazed at them both skeptically but did not prod them any further. He changed the topic. "Anyway, where is North?" he grumbled. "He didn't call us here for nothing, did he?"

As if on cue, the big burly Russian man appeared along with Sandy, the Sandman. They looked extremely troubled.

"Took him long enough," Bunny muttered crossly to himself.

North ignored Bunny's statement and took a deep breath, calming his nerves before delivering the message in a deep, throaty Russian accent. "The Spirits from all over the world are disappearing."

One could hear a pin drop after North said that. The room was so quiet. Even Bunnymund did not comment on anything. The silence lasted for a about half a minute before everyone except North and Sandy started talking at once.

"How is that possible?" Tooth fluttered her wings in a frantic motion.

"Could it be Pitch's doing?" Jack balled his fists.

"I should be able to locate them as long as Frostbite here doesn't interfere," Bunny claimed.

"I heard that, Kangaroo." Jack glowered, preparing a snowball and ready to hurl it at the Easter Bunny.

It took quite a while before North could get them to settle down. "Silence!" he yelled. That effectively got the other three Guardians to close their mouths and hold back the questions that were coming out in rapid-fire style. North paused for a while, as if daring the others to talk, before he continued," We don't know why or how the Spirits have been disappearing. It is a very peculiar case, I must say, but we cannot jump straight into conclusions."

Tooth, Sandy, Jack and Bunny nodded in agreement with North's statement.

North then said," That is why I will send Jack to Pitch's palace to check out if the Boogeyman is truly making a comeback against us."


	4. Chapter 3- The Night of the Blood Moon

**The Dark Army**

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**Summary: **Is Pitch Black really gone for good? What if he comes back, more powerful than before, with a new army of darkness, one that the Guardians had never expected? What if a new Spirit is chosen to be a Guardian, but had become one of Pitch's allies? How will the Guardians convince her to join them instead? My first fanfiction!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians or The Guardians of Childhood.

**Author's Notes: **Thanks for the review and follows! Like I said in the previous chapter, this chapter will be concentrated on the bad guys instead of the good ones. Oh yeah. I'm sorry if the first part of the chapter seemed a bit weird, with the cemetery in Burgess and all, but it was all for the benefit of the story.

* * *

**Chapter III: The Night of the Blood Moon**

A few nights before the Guardians' gathering, a strange phenomenon occurred. So strange it was that it seemed to originate from the power of the moon itself. In fact, it _was _from the moon.

That strange occurrence was known as the Blood Moon.

It was when the moon was completely red. It was the only time when the Man in the Moon did not have any control over his domain. It was also the time when the ancient forces of evil were stirring. Its great negative energy produced could be used by certain evil Spirits who want to plunge the world into darkness.

Spirits such as Pitch Black.

The Nightmare King, also known as the Boogeyman, took advantage of the pure darkness that radiated from the ever-powerful Blood Moon. He shadow-travelled to the old cemetery in that city Burgess and looked for the one tomb he needed.

_Here lies the body of Melinda Overland who died at the age of 19._

_She was born in this town on 1671 and died on 1690._

_Rest In Peace._

Pitch cackled softly. Perfect. The perfect victim. The Guardians would not know what hit them.

Concentrating on his dark energy, the Nightmare King performed an eerie ritual that made the shadows distort and weave themselves around him. The tombstone glowed indigo in the darkness as Pitch chanted an ancient necromancy spell. Soon, a hiss could be heard. A _snake's _hiss. Then a body rose from the bottom of the grave.

It was a female humanoid snake's body. The young lady had writhing pythons as hair and her feet were replaced by a long, scaly, serpent-like tail, complete with slimy green scales. Her features, once beautiful, were disfigured by the protruding fangs from her frothing mouth and scales that lined her face. The snake lady had sharp features and glowing green eyes with narrow slits as pupils and she wore a black gothic- style dress, almost like a mourner. Her tiny red forked tongue flickered in and out of her mouth, tasting the cool night air.

_Medusa._ The shadows told her. _Your name is Medusa._

The snake lady blinked, looking at Pitch as her eyes stopped glowing.

Pitch smiled sinisterly. "Welcome back to life, Medusa. You shall be my servant from now on. You shall be the bane of Jack Frost!" he cackled.

The humanoid snake smiled evilly at the sound of her new name and disappeared into the darkness with her new master. She was no longer Melinda Overland, sister of the only other person she could remember: Jackson Overland, her older brother. She was now Medusa, servant of the Boogeyman, and future assassin of Jack Frost.

* * *

In the mountains of the north, a howl could be heard from a deep and dark cave. The call of the werewolves.

Lyacon, king of the werewolves, rallied his troops, his yellow-rimmed eyes betraying no emotion or mercy. He howled again as more wolves assembled before him. He gazed down at his troops from his position at the top of a boulder. "Today, we shall feast!" he bellowed. The other wolves growled and roared in approval. "We shall feast on our enemies' fear and blood. We will rule the world in darkness, where we will have an endless supply of flesh! Today, we have allied ourselves with the Nightmare King to bring the world on its knees before us! Let our first target be Toothiana, whom you know had cursed us of our fate! We shall feed on her very being and existance!" Lyacon roared, his jaws slavering at the thought of ripping the Tooth Fairy to pieces.

* * *

An insect flew into a cave. It flitted in and out of the stalagmites, concealing itself from predators in the darkness. Suddenly, it could not seem to move. It was as if it was stuck to something and was trying to escape from it.

Suddenly, a spider's web materialized. So that was what the insect had flown into. A web! And, oh my goodness, how huge it was. The entire cavern was filled with the silky substance. No one would be able to get out of that place alive, with all these sticky silk around.

Then a huge, hulking figure appeared. It was a spindly creature with eight legs- every insect's nightmare. Arachne, the queen of the spiders was here. The lady spider had long, loose hair that covered her grotesque face. Her body was a spider's torso and her eight spindly legs worked faster than a normal eye could follow. Why, oh, why did that insect wander in that place? Its fate was sealed. It was going to end up as one of the mutilated carcasses left hanging on the edges of the blood-stained web. Cowering, it resigned itself to writing its obituary that none of the sensible creatures would ever read.

"It is time," Arachne hissed, a raspy voice. "The Blood Moon is here. It is time for me to break out of my prison and suffering the Guardians have put me in. I will have my revenge. Hear my words, E. Aster Bunnymund! I will come for you, and you will bow before me!"

* * *

Deep in the darkness in an unknown place, a Spirit of Chaos struggled under the weight of the chains he was shackled in. Slowly, his strength gathered bit by bit, and with the help of the power of the Blood Moon, the giant Chaos Spirit attempted to break out of the prison he had been in for centuries. He struggled, fighting against his chains and shackles….

And suddenly, he was free.

The snake of Chaos slithered out of his prison, towards the fortress of his new patron, Pitch Black. His eyes glinted maliciously as his blood red scales reflected off the red moonlight, giving the illusion of him turning into liquid fire. He had allied himself with the Nightmare King for only one purpose.

Revenge on the accursed Guardian of Wonder, St. Nicholas North, who had caused him a great deal of pain and suffering, and was the one who had chained him up for all those years.

The snake of Chaos, Apophis, was free.


	5. Chapter 4- The Mission

**The Dark Army**

* * *

**Summary: **Is Pitch Black really gone for good? What if he comes back, more powerful than before, with a new army of darkness, one that the Guardians had never expected? What if a new Spirit is chosen to be a Guardian, but had become one of Pitch's allies? How will the Guardians convince her to join them instead? My first fanfiction!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians or The Guardians of Childhood.

**Author's Notes: **I will like to thank Apollo Holmes for contributing some ideas into the plot that I will improvise as the story unfolds. I also want to apologise for the shortness of this chapter. Until then, stay tuned!

* * *

**Chapter IV: The Mission**

"What?!" Toothiana and Bunnymund yelled in unison, though for two very different reasons. Bunny's eyes became as big as saucer plates as soon as he heard the shocking news. "Why not me?" he whined. "I'm sure I can thrash Pitch better than Frostbite! Why does he get all the fun?"

Jack smirked in triumph, which caused Bunny to narrow his once huge eyes. "Because I'm the Guardian of Fun?"

"Oh, shut it, Show Pony." That, obviously, caused Jack's grin to widen. He was not going to let Bunny steal the limelight this time.

Tooth was, on the other hand, concerned. She flew over to him and touched his shoulder in a motherly gesture as Bunny glowered. "Will you be alright?"

Jack smiled tenderly at Tooth. He knew she always had a soft spot for him, and would always be worried if he volunteered for a dangerous mission, like this one. He let her hand rest on his shoulder. "I'll be fine," he replied gently, though Tooth's expression told him that she was not convinced. Then, suddenly, she let go of his shoulder and flew to North.

"It's too dangerous for him to go alone," Tooth argued. North frowned. "It's just a short trip and he'll come back."

"At least let me come with him, in case Pitch is really back." Tooth protested.

"No. For one, the rest of the Guardians are going to go together and check on the bigger threat. Apophis has broken out from his prison. Besides, even if Pitch is back, he'll be too weak to even take on Jack, and Jack's powers are much more powerful and easy to control after all these years since the Battle of Belief."

"But…" Tooth was silenced with a glare from North. Sighing dejectedly, she flew back to Jack. "Sorry… I can't help you…"

Jack chuckled. "I'll be fine, Tooth. Maybe I'll even get you a souvenir when I get back!"

And with that, he flew off, hearing a last unflattering comment from Bunny, an angry sigh from North which was directed at Tooth, and seeing a wave from Sandy and the worried look on Tooth face.

"Now, let's get to business," North told the other Guardians and they followed him. However, no one but the Queen of the Toothfairies noticed the tiny miniature fairy known as Baby Tooth flying after Jack, staying high in the sky to be unnoticed by anyone except Tooth herself.

Tooth smiled inwardly, knowing that Jack now was not alone.


	6. Chapter 5- Fall to Darkness

**The Dark Army**

* * *

**Summary: **Is Pitch Black really gone for good? What if he comes back, more powerful than before, with a new army of darkness, one that the Guardians had never expected? What if a new Spirit is chosen to be a Guardian, but had become one of Pitch's allies? How will the Guardians convince her to join them instead? My first fanfiction!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians or The Guardians of Childhood.

**Author's Notes: **I am so sorry for not updating! By the way, Jack's new name came from his original name and the words will 'o wisp.

* * *

**Chapter V: Fall to Darkness**

Not many know this but Burgess, at the moment, was a dangerous place to be in.

Jack was one such Spirit that didn't know about the dangers of the shadows that were lurking around, whipping around him sinisterly. He thought that Pitch was really gone for good, and, thus, was careless. He flew around, carefree, and even did some stunts in midair. For what purpose, no one knew. One could argue that he was not on a dangerous mission.

Jack flew past houses, and created a flash freeze, whooping in delight and triumph as the pavements and roads suddenly crackled with ice and frost. He slowly went to where Pitch was last banished.

Then the atmosphere turned grim and dark, and the shadows tugged at Jack insistently to go into the hole that led to the underground fortress_. Come_, they seemed to say. _Come, and witness the horrors of the underground, Jack Frossst… _The shadows hissed at him with absolute loathing, yet with an insistent and alluring, almost hypnotic tone.

The winter Spirit's mind went blank. "O…. Okay…." He managed to mumble and started to lower himself down the hole. His eyes were glazed from the hypnotic spell.

* * *

Baby Tooth noticed all that from a distance. _Jack! _She screamed in fright, hoping that he would hear her. Nothing, obviously. _Oh, no! I have to follow him! _She then zoomed into the hole in pursuit of the Guardian of Fun. _ I… I have to tell Toothiana about this!_

The miniature fairy plunged into eternal darkness.

* * *

Jack followed the shadows' command without question, walking in the dark like a hypnotised Spirit, which, he probably was. He slowly lost sight of his mission and purpose, succumbing to the ever-growing darkness.

An ominous laughter and a hiss of triumph could be heard.

_Good. Good boy, Jack Frost. _The shadows cooed as they watched him stumble around, before he passed out.

A humanoid snake slithered out of the shadows. She had come to battle the winter Spirit Jack Frost. Medusa waited in anticipation, her forked tongue darting in and out of her mouth as she licked her black-tinted lips. In her right hand clutched a flaming whip. She was ready to destroy him, but, on her Master's orders, she would not, as much as she would like to. Pitch Black had somehow felt that the said Guardian could be something more useful than being just a plaything. Perhaps even a possible ally.

The winter Spirit approached her, staggering and having his energy sapped by the overwhelming darkness. Medusa frowned. What kind of challenge was this? She made her whip disappear. Never mind. At least he was at his weakest. Medusa then started to drag him to the Nightmare King.

Pitch Black was waiting for her. He had his hands on his hips and his left foot was tapping at the ground impatiently. He finally saw her. "Did you bring Jack Frost back here?" he questioned her in anticipation. She nodded, holding up the Spirit by the neck. Pitch smiled and pointed to the round in front of him. "Good. Put him here and you are dismissed." Medusa nodded. "Yes, Master." She dumped Jack at Pitch's feet before slithering off.

Pitch took in a deep breath, and took out an orb with red and black sands swirling around it. He brought it to the fallen Guardian's chest and cackled. The orb started to absorb the Guardian's essence, very much like how it absorbed the other Spirits' life, and corrupting him. Nightmare Sand started to engulf the unconscious Guardian of Fun. Red and black lights swiveled around the Guardian, changing him, twisting him, making him fall to the clutches of evil. Then the lights dimmed, and disappeared, and a reformed Jack kneeled before Pitch. His white hair had turned black. His blue hoodie and brown pants turned red and black respectively, and his eyes glowed the most sinister shade of blood red. Atop his staff stood a flaming skull.

Jack Frost was gone. In his place stood a new Spirit- Jack 'O Wisp.

Pitch laughed. It worked. Jack Frost was corrupted. And this time, he was sure, the Guardians were doomed.

* * *

Baby Tooth almost squealed in fright from her perch behind a pillar in the fortress, which would have blown her cover. She zoomed back to the North Pole, desperate to inform the Guardians about this.


	7. Chapter 6- A Smothering Easter

**The Dark Army**

**Author's Note: **I'm so sorry for not updating this fanfic for such a long time! I was out of ideas and it's pretty hectic lately. Again, I'll like to thank those who had followed and reviewed the story! Also, I wish everyone a belated Merry Christmas!

**Summary: **Is Pitch Black really gone for good? What if he comes back, more powerful than before, with a new army of darkness, one that the Guardians had never expected? What if a new Spirit is chosen to be a Guardian, but had become one of Pitch's allies? How will the Guardians convince her to join them instead? My first fanfiction!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians or The Guardians of Childhood.

**Chapter VI: A Smothering Easter – The First Victim**

Months passed since the corruption of a certain winter spirit. After North claimed that it was a false alarm and that there was nothing to worry about, and that the fact that Apophis was still their prisoner, the other Guardians went back to doing their duties. None of them thought that it was suspicious of Jack not returning to them, everyone, except Tooth.

"Bah, I bet Frosty just disappeared back to Burgess after checking on Pitch," Bunnymund replied, a little annoyed, after the lone female Guardian visited his Warren and asked him about Jack's whereabouts. Easter was approaching, and Bunny was anxiously preparing for the important event. The Easter Rabbit could not be bothered by trival matters such as their fellow Guardian. Surely, Jack could take care of himself.

"But I'm worried, Bunnymund. He hasn't come back ever since he went to check on Pitch. What if something happened to him and North was just turning a blind eye to what had happened?"

"Sheila, he'll be F. I. N. E. . If you're so worried, why not ask North and Sandy for their opinions?"

"I already have. Sandy's trying to locate him everywhere, and North had shut himself out for some mysterious reason…"

"I know you're worried about him, but can't you see that this is getting us nowhere? I'll help you to find him after Easter. Now if you would excuse me…" Bunnymund bounded away from the Queen of the Toothfairies and started to paint one of his delicate Easter eggs in bright, hopeful colours. For someone who was in the home of the Guardian of Hope, Tooth was feeling quite hopeless.

Finally, the female Guardian sighed and left Bunny to prepare for Easter. No point asking him. She headed back to her Palace, where she locked herself in her room, leaving her Toothfairies to help her collect teeth from the children from all over the globe. She collapsed on her soft bed, thinking hard. _North wouldn't let the matter go so easily. I know Bunny's attitude towards Jack, so his reaction is pretty normal, especially when it's almost Easter… Sandy is worried about him as well but North wouldn't allow a search… Why?_ Tooth pondered about it. _Hmm… Something's not right._

That was when Baby Tooth chose to burst into Tooth's room, squealing, gesturing and basically acting completely panicked. "Any news about Jack?" Tooth practically jumped out of her bed with a hidden burst of energy and blurted the question the minute the panicked fairy barged in.

"_Yes, but that's the problem!" _Baby Tooth screamed frantically, waving her tiny hands all around. _"Pitch did something to Jack! I couldn't see with all those weird lights surrounding him!"_

"What?! What did Pitch do to him?! Where is he?!" Tooth anxiously asked, slipping into the hummingbird language in her panic. Her face ghostly pale at the thought of Jack being captured by the Boogeyman, or worse.

"_I don't know! Like I said, there were some strange lights and, suddenly, another spirit appeared – but Jack was gone!"_

"What spirit was it?" Tooth was on the verge on hyperventilation.

Baby Tooth shrugged.

Tooth paled even more. _This is bad… This is very bad… _she thought to herself. Aloud, she instructed Baby Tooth to temporarily take over her duties and keep watch over the other Miniature Fairies while she went to Pitch's lair herself to find Jack.

* * *

It was the day before Easter, and Bunnymund was doing his final touch-ups to his Easter eggs, when a blast of warm air could be felt. The Easter Bunny was immediately on the alert as embers and ash drifted from one of his tunnels. This had never happened before. Bunny took out his boomerangs and bounded stealthily over to the tunnel, his eyes narrowing as he peered into the ever-increasingly dusty and hot air.

All of a sudden, a huge blast of fire was hurtled towards the said Guardian, missing his whiskers by mere inches. Bunny, shocked, stared as a sinister spirit clothed in a red hoodie and black pants with flaming eyes the colour of blood stepped out of the darkness. "Who are you, _mate_?" Bunny's last word carried a tinge of venom. "How dare you barge into my Warren!" He flung his boomerangs at the corrupted Jack but the evil spirit of fire dodged nimbly, smirking as he sent another blast of fire down one of the Guardian of Hope's tunnels. It destroyed millions of Easter eggs. "No!" Bunny yelled in desperation as he lunged himself at the evil Jack, determined to bring him down.

Unfortunately for him, the flame spirit was fast. Too fast for Bunny to keep up. In blind anger, he charged recklessly at his opponent, stumbling and coughing in the smoke. It was then Jack changed tactics. He stayed out of the way of the angered Guardian and only riled him up with bursts of fire. After he made sure that the job was done, he departed in haste, cackling as he flew back to the Boogeyman's lair.

The smoke soon cleared, and the exhausted Bunnymund realised just what destruction he himself had caused.

In his furious state, the Easter Bunny had destroyed his own eggs.


	8. Chapter 7- Discovery

**The Dark Army**

**Summary: **Is Pitch Black really gone for good? What if he comes back, more powerful than before, with a new army of darkness, one that the Guardians had never expected? What if a new Spirit is chosen to be a Guardian, but had become one of Pitch's allies? How will the Guardians convince her to join them instead? My first fanfiction, so I'm still an amateur. If there is anything I can improve in, please tell me.

**Author's Note: **I'm so sorry for not updating this fanfic for months! I've been trying to improve in my writing, and I've got a major writer's block. Once again, I'll like to apologise for not updating this fanfic sooner.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians or The Guardians of Childhood.

* * *

**Chapter VII – Discovery**

At last, the Queen of the Tooth Fairies approached the lair of the Boogeyman and although she could not see anything yet, her instincts told her that an ancient evil was inside, that the lair was still full of menace, even after all those years. She hesitated as dark energy from the hole washed over her. Maybe she should call the others.

_But Jack may be in trouble._ That single thought was enough to fuel her fear of losing him, that, along with her drive to find him, no matter what.

Mustering her courage, Tooth plunged herself into the endless darkness, enduring the scent of decay and the spiteful shadows and creatures of the night that whispered their desires, all of which were consumed in the ever-growing evil and fear of the accursed lair.

* * *

The hugeness of the place almost overwhelmed Tooth. Evil was at work. In the past, the cavern that served as the lair of the Boogeyman was about as long and wide as two football fields, and as tall as a skyscraper. The lair was built very near to the earth's core, just so that it would not be discovered by any humans who might ruin his plan. It was also built so deep as it needed the space to expand, without affecting the world above, so that the Guardians would not know that Pitch was still hard at work. Now, his effort seemed to pay off. It was three times as big. However, apart from the vastness of the lair, there really was nothing to look at. The whole cavern was in dull shades of grey and black. A river of lava illuminated the place with a sinister red glow. Hundreds of bats hung from sharp stalagmites above and Nightmare horses raced through the air, their golden eyes glowing with the rage and desire to be free and not always hiding in the darkness, to wreak havoc in the upper world. To serve their master.

Tooth's only source of light, apart from the lava, came from her luminous wings. As such, she would have to take extra caution, especially when she was unfamiliar in Pitch's territory. She would also have to be careful of the creatures lurking in the shadows, which were just biding their time and waiting to sneak up to their victims before harming them in whatever gruesome ways they were capable of.

With those thoughts in mind, Tooth put up her guard, both physically and mentally, and started to venture into the ever-growing darkness.

* * *

Bunnymund waited anxiously for the others to arrive. He needed to tell them about the new crisis involving the unknown fire spirit, though the destruction of his Warren would depict more than enough of what he was going to express. His slightly charred whiskers twitched impatiently when he finally caught sight of a tiny golden aeroplane. Sandy.

"Sandy! Over here!" Bunny shouted at the Sandman, waving his paws frantically in the air. He couldn't risk having any of his fellow Guardians getting lost in the complicated tunnels he has built. Even from a distance, Bunny could already see the shock and worry spreading on Sandy's normally contented and peaceful face. He could tell why. The Warren was hazy from the smoke that the fire that spirit had produced and the beautiful plants that made spring come to live were charred and blackened. Above all, his precious Easter eggs were smashed and broken, obliterated by the Easter Bunny's hand.

_How could I have been so colossally stupid?! To actually think that I, the Guardian of Hope, would fall for that…. that Show Pony's trick! I didn't even know why he did that for! Come to think of it, I've never met him…._ His thoughts were rudely interrupted by Sandy, who waved his hand in front of the Bunny's face, trying to get his attention. The little fellow's expression portrayed all the bewilderment and shock he had.

"Yeah, yeah," Bunny responded in a gruff voice, bravely trying to put up a tough front. "See for yourself. Some spirit barged in and destroyed the Warren." He gestured around him, trying not to tremble from the anger, guilt and sorrow that was welling up in him. His home. Destroyed. The flame spirit that had caused this would pay.

Behind the two, someone coughed, trying to get their attention.

"North!" Bunny cried out in greeting. "Where're Frosty and the Sheila?"

North smiled and shrugged, stepping out of the shadows gingerly. "It's good to see you…. I heard what you had told Sandy and I'm deeply troubled about your…. Little situation. I do not know where Jack and Tooth are, though…." The man known as Santa Claus furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

Sandy created a few Dreamsand signs. _North, is there anything that we can do?_

"I advise you to look for the Lady of the Lake. She's a sorceress who is capable of looking into the past, present and future, though she carefully guards what she sees. Maybe you and Sandy can convince her to tell you what is going on." North replied.

"Then…. What about you, North? Aren't ya coming with us?"

"No. I have very important things to attend to, and the Workshop is in a chaos." With that, the old man bid his fellow Guardians farewell before throwing a Snowglobe and exiting the Warren.

Sandy frowned. Something wasn't right about North's behavior. He gave Bunny a questioning look.

"Bah," the Easter rabbit replied the little golden man. "Never mind about him. Let's go and visit the Lady of the Lake."

* * *

It soon became apparent to Toothiana that it was almost impossible to navigate Pitch's lair. A few minutes after she had ventured into the threshold, she had already become hopelessly lost. Once, she travelled a whole round around the place and ended up at the starting point. What was worse was that she always had to be cautious of her surroundings. She shuddered, remember that time when a few Nightmare horses cornered her when she was not careful. It took all her speed and trickery to destroy them all without alerting the rest. However, she was slowly making progress, memorising the terrain the best she could and destroying as many dark creatures as possible. Slowly, she found herself staring into the corridors of the dungeon of the fortress.

Tooth inched forward, carefully looking into the cells where various creatures were captured. She had an urge to rescue them, but couldn't, for she would alert the enemy, and, make no mistake, the enemy was everywhere.

Finally, she reached one particular cell which held a familiar figure. The Queen of the Toothfairies rushed forward, furiously trying to comprehend what she seeing.

"North?! Why are you in there?!" she said in a half-muffled shriek of shock.

The leader of the Guardians heaved a sigh of relief before panic overcame him. "Tooth," he said in a hushed voice. "You have to leave immediately, before they discover you're here!"

"What?! No, I'm not going to leave without you. Just give me a while to get you out of here…. How did you get captured in the first place….?" Tooth's sudden realisation got her to think about the North that had been so against her idea of going into Pitch's lair.

The man sighed. "Listen to me! Pitch's army is getting stronger, and that Boogeyman has attained a new power to cloak himself in shadows to create illusions. He used an image of Jack to lure me here…." North sighed, regretful that he had fallen for such a trick. After facing off against Pitch for such a long time, he should have known that he would never run out of the dirty tricks he had cooked up.

Tooth gasped. "That means-"

"-My master has been impersonating this pathetic prisoner. You're absolutely correct, my dear."

The Toothfairy Queen spun around quickly to find herself facing a woman in black robes, and a nest of snakes for hair. She had been so emotionally swept by this revelation that she had allowed herself to let her guard down. A foolish idea. Tooth had never seen this particular person before, but the snake-lady seemed like one of Pitch's elite guards, from the way she observed Tooth's position and mentally noted down her stance. She smirked. "Surrender yourself."

In response, the woman was given a look of utter disgust and anger. "Who are you?!" Tooth demanded.

"Ah, yes. How rude of me to not introduce myself. My name is Medusa, and I'll personally make sure that you'll never get out of here alive, Queen Toothiana."


	9. Chapter 8- The Battle and The Truth

**The Dark Army**

**Summary: **Is Pitch Black really gone for good? What if he comes back, more powerful than before, with a new army of darkness, one that the Guardians had never expected? What if a new Spirit is chosen to be a Guardian, but had become one of Pitch's allies? How will the Guardians convince her to join them instead? My first fanfiction, so I'm still an amateur. If there is anything I can improve in, please tell me.

**Author's Note: **Actually, I have no reason to not update this fanfic, other than the usual excuse of being buried somewhere under a pile of books, papers and homework. One thing's for sure, though: I'll be able to update whenever I have a holiday (or, rather unlikely, spare time). Also, this will be the very first battle scene I'm writing so I hope that it is at least decent for a beginner like me! I hope you will enjoy this chapter!

**The Shadow Gryphon: **Thanks! :)

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians or The Guardians of Childhood.

* * *

**Chapter VIII: The Battle and The Truth**

Medusa stared at her opponent passively, tense and poised to strike. Her unnerving venomous green eyes unblinking and scrutinising before she struck like a viper going in for the kill. She lashed viciously with her whip in hand, the weapon snaking towards the female Guardian who barely dodged the attack. Tooth gained altitude and dived for the snake-lady's feet, attempting to put her off balance and gain the upper hand from there, but was promptly pulled off-course in order to avoid Medusa's whip.

The battle continued like that with Medusa lashing out with her whip and putting a safe distance between herself and Tooth and the female Guardian trying to avoid the weapon and trying to use her speed to land a quick blow to her opponent. As the battle between the ladies raged on, North desperately shook the bars of his prison. How could he let one of his teammates battle Pitch's elite alone? He had to escape and help her, somehow….

"You…. You will never be able to defeat me, Toothiana," Medusa hissed as she deftly flicked her wrist and sent the whip flying towards Tooth. A little too slow this time, the whip wrapped around the ankle of the exhausted hummingbird-human hybrid, cutting into her flesh as dark red liquid slowly dripped onto the ground. Tooth gasped as Medusa yanked her out of the air and she landed onto the ground with a painful thud. "Lyacon will be pleased when he sees his mortal enemy wrapped in chains and kneeling before him. I'm sure he will make your end quick if you surrender now…."

Tooth desperately glanced around for an opening to escape Medusa's clutches. The burning pain at her ankle wouldn't matter if she didn't manage to rescue North and get out of there quick….

Illuminated by the light given out by her wings, a sudden glint of metal at the belt of the snake-lady caught the female Guardian's attention…. Though it was mostly rusted, she could barely make out the shape of a key in the hazy darkness…. Glancing back at North's rattling cell, an insane idea formed in her head. If she could actually snag that key from Medusa's belt, her idea might actually work, though she had to be really, really dependent on luck for this one….

"Well….? I guess I'll just put an end to y-"

"Never!"

As quick as thought, Tooth drew one of her knives and cut the whip that was tied around her ankle and darted towards the surprised Medusa. Taking advantage of her confusion, the hybrid hummingbird grabbed the key off the belt of Medusa and threw it to North, who caught it and inserted it into the lock of his cell. Lady luck had really picked a good time to smile on the Guardians for the door of the cell had opened with a swift kick from him.

"NO!" The snake woman screamed in a horrible rasp before her eyes started to glow a menacing green. Her body was suddenly lit by a dark green aura similar to her eyes. "You…. Will…. All…. FALL! There is NO ESCAPE!"

"Don't look into her eyes! When her eyes glow, her gaze can turn you into stone!" North warned, quickly running out of his cell despite his deep wounds. Medusa's voice sounded a little weird, though, as if it had gotten more robotic and deeper. But there was no time to dwell on things like that. Tooth nodded and flew out of the corridor, Nightmares and Fearlings relentlessly pursuing them.

"This way!" North shouted as he took a bend to the left.

"H-How do you know where to go?!" the queen of the Toothfaries panted as she raced after the leader of the Guardians.

"This…. This was an old abandoned part of the Warren that Pitch left to waste. Bunnymund and I kept it a secret…. But enough talk! We're almost reaching the surface…."

With a final burst of energy, Tooth and North escaped into broad daylight, where the harsh rays of the sun hit the dark army like infinite missiles. The armies of darkness shrieked and retreated upon being blinded by the light.

Tooth collapsed onto the ground beside North, gasping for breath and shaken by the day's ordeals. "W-Where…. Are we….?" When she finally caught her breath and sat up, she took a good look of her surroundings. The two had ended up in a clearing in the middle of a forest, with huge and ancient trees surrounding it. Wildflowers were seen everywhere and she could detect the scent of dew and the undergrowth. This was her element.

"The Amazon." North replied after he, too, caught his breath. "Thank you for rescuing me. This time, Pitch has planned well. And ever since the blood moon –the night of evil and darkness- he has gained much more power as compared to the past."

"What kind of powers?"

"I'll better start from the beginning. This new lair Pitch has…. As I told you just now, it was once part of Bunnymund's Warren. It was one of the most majestic places…. And his pride and joy. All Easter preparations were done there. The eggs had to pass through that place for a final check before they could travel to the other parts of the world. However, Pitch changed all that. He and the other three demons, Apophis, Arachne and Lyacon, cursed that place, so that everything there was wilted and dead…. And there was nothing we could do to restore it…. Apparently, it has become his new base of operations. Now back to the present. From what I have discovered recently, he is able to corrupt good spirits, which was the reason for the sudden disappearance of so of them. He is also able to create illusions, which was what he did to trick me and to trick all of you. He freed Apophis, Lyacon and Arachne, the demons we had captured during the ancient times so that they would not hurt the children we protect, from their seals."

"Lyacon! Oh no…. Our greatest enemies…. Then what about the snake-lady?" Tooth gasped.

"Alas, that is what I need you to find out about. Medusa is still a dangerous threat…. And a mystery. I do not know such a spirit existed, much less when did Pitch get his slimy hands on her. I need you to find out more about her. Who she is and why she was brought back to life. Right now, the demons are at the lowest of their powers, after we had imprisoned them for such a long time, but they are still strong. If they managed to regain the power they had in the past, they will turn the world into a nightmare, just like what they did to that part of Bunnymund's Warren…."

Tooth sucked in her breath. "You're asking me to…. Find out more about Medusa…. Wait. What about Jack? Is his disappearance related to any of this?"

"Yes. Find out more about her. Break the ancient rules if you have to. And Jack…." North's expression momentarily turned into a mask of panic and pain. "Even though I do not know, I believe that, yes, his disappearance was highly related to this. Go now, Toothiana. I will need to find Pitch and stop him from deceiving the rest of the Guardians."

Even as Tooth tried to protest that North barely made it out of a battle, she knew he was right. Indeed, they were in a very dire situation. At last she gave in and flew back to the Palace while North whistled for his sleigh. For the sake of the children, the missing Jack and her teammates, she would do her part and would not fail.

_Even if I have to break the ancient rules…_

* * *

"Hey, uh, mate, are we there yet? Ya sure that this is the right place?" Bunnymund's impatient voice echoed through the cave they were in.

Sandy looked uneasy as he glanced at his surroundings, which was all pitch dark and foggy. Bats hung from hundreds of stalagmites above them. He shivered. He couldn't help but think that each one of them was staring at the three with their small, beady eyes.

"Yes. I'm very sure." North replied as they arrived at the centre of the huge cave. "We stop here."

"Wait, what?! But I see no lake!"

_What is the meaning of this, North?_

Just then, a female humanoid snake slithered in, looking extremely flustered. She bowed before North. "M-My lord, my apologies b-but the prisoner…. The prisoner escaped. Toothiana attacked the base and freed North."

"What?!" 'North' bellowed, causing both Sandy and Bunny to flinch in shock. "…. My illusions have been working perfectly. Everything is going according to plan…. And now this?! Eliminate them. I will not tolerate anyone who stands in my way. Lyacon will deal with them while I want you, Arachne and Apophis to start destroying the Guardians' homes once and for all." At that, the snake-lady quickly took her leave. He then turned to the two Guardians, who were slowly backing away and staring at the scene with wide eyes. "And now for the two of you…."

Bunny wasted no time and created a tunnel with a tap from his paw. "Hurry, jump in, Sandy! It's a trap!" The Sandman quickly did as the Bunny said, but not before waving his hand and summoning a small Dreamsand sandstorm to cover up their escape.

The illusion wavered around 'North', distorting and disfiguring, until it turned into a familiar dark figure. Pitch. He thrust his hand into the golden sand, instantly turning it into Nightmare Sand.

"Get them, Jack!" he screamed in fury and the flame spirit, hiding in the shadows, suddenly lunged at the two and pursued them through the tunnels. However, he was about to follow when a huge sleigh slammed into him, leaving him extremely winded.

North ran and quickly jumped into the tunnel created by Bunny, yelling in fright as he slid down, as his sleigh lifted away. The opening to the tunnel then closed, leaving a furious Pitch outside. North managed to draw one of his swords and slashed wildly at Jack, who wasn't expecting an uninvited guest. The two clashed, and Jack gained the upper hand with his agility. He blasted fire at North, who tumbled past him and barely managed to not yet incinerated, though his whiskers were still singed.

"There's that fire spirit! So it's been Pitch all along! Sandy, this is their territory. We'll better run away first. That mate's no joke." Bunny warned as he raced through his tunnels. He glanced back, and noticed a very beat-up North behind them. "Gah- wait, North?! Mate, ya came! Where's the Sheila?"

"Head for the Tooth Place! She's there! I'll explain everything later!"

Sandy nodded, flying in an aeroplane made of Dreamsand. _Pitch said 'Jack'…. Was that the name of this spirit….? What if he really is Jack Frost, but somehow twisted? And why did that snake-lady look so familiar even though I've never met her….?_ He kept those thoughts to himself, for now, for the most important thing to do now was to escape. They had to meet up with Tooth in the Palace and get this 'Jack' spirit off their tail.


	10. Chapter 9- Medusa's Memories

**The Dark Army**

**Summary: **Is Pitch Black really gone for good? What if he comes back, more powerful than before, with a new army of darkness, one that the Guardians had never expected? What if a new Spirit is chosen to be a Guardian, but had become one of Pitch's allies? How will the Guardians convince her to join them instead? My first fanfiction, so I'm still an amateur. If there is anything I can improve in, please tell me.

* * *

**Author's Note: **First things first, I'll have to apologise for the six-month-long hiatus. Now that exams are finally over, I hope that I'll be able to have the luxury of time to update this fanfic more. Regarding this fanfic… This chapter will probably be one of the more important chapters. Now, on to the responses to the reviews.

**Apollo Holmes: **Yes… I just noticed that too. That's be horrible planning on my part, so I'll have to apologise for that. I'm sorry.

**The Shadow Gryphon: **Thanks for the support!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians or The Guardians of Childhood.

* * *

**Chapter IX: Medusa's Memories**

Tooth flew through the spiraling corridors of her Palace at top speed, scattering aside her own miniature helpers in a flurry of multicoloured feathers. Ignoring their squeaks of protest, she raced to the entrance to one of the rooms in an extremely secluded area of the castle. She hesitated, unlocked the door with a golden key before opening it to reveal a small and neat room, though it was clear that it was inhabited for a very long time. The dull gold walls and ceiling was caked with dust. The floor was had lost its shine and a single table, seemingly stuck on to the floor by its base and intricately decorated and etched with designs, held a glowing misty sphere. Tooth flitted to the sphere and cradled it with both her hands. She knew that she shouldn't be doing this, but it was the sake for the Guardians and the world's children. Surely the Man in the Moon wouldn't mind.

Still, she felt that she was intruding in Medusa's private life. For a split second, she considered not doing it, since it felt so… _Wrong_. She stared at the swirling sphere, in deep thought.

Then with a deep breath, she concentrated hard and managed a whisper. "Medusa."

The fragile cloud orb expanded and filled the entire room with wispy tendrils of white mist. Then a scene slowly appeared before her eyes. The mist was slowly expanding throughout the entire room, until Tooth could see the entire scene the illusion created. Her eyes widened in shock and recognition at the sight Medusa's memories.

"_Jack! Do another one!" The little brown-haired girl squealed in delight as her lanky brother –it was obvious; both of them looked so similar- laughed and stuck the fake reindeer horns on the sides of his head before pulling a funny face and dancing in front of her. The little girl giggled at her brother's antics and gazed at him with large, adoring eyes. After he had stopped, she slipped her tiny pale hand into his without much effort and snuggled against him near the blazing fireplace for warmth. Jack wrapped his cloak around her tiny shoulders. Even though it was cold, Merlinda loved winter. Jack was always there for her, and he was always there to cheer her up and play games with her in the thick snow. She loved him for that. He was her idol._

"… _Jack, you won't leave me, right?"_

_Her brother smiled and chuckled as he tucked her into bed. "Of course not. Why would you think of such a thing?"_

"_Oh, nothing. I just wanted to know…" the inquisitive little girl replied, giving him a huge toothless grin. "Goodnight, brother…"_

"_Goodnight, Merlinda. Sweet dreams."_

_As the two fell into a deep slumber, the dark, inky shadows pooled around the cold wooden floor and a dark clawed hand-like shape stroked at Merlinda's hair. 'So… This is the one… How convenient…' With a soft cackle, it travelled away, leaving the little girl shivering in the heavy darkness of night._

The scene changed to the next day, and Tooth dreaded what might happen to the siblings. That shadow that she had seen was undoubtedly Pitch, or at least one of his minions. If she didn't know the Nightmare King better, he wouldn't be spying on random commoners at night. Something must've told him that Jack would become a Guardian, and that his sister could be used to his advantage in this impending battle.

Sure enough, it showed the scene where Jack had spent his last day as a human.

_The tall, lanky boy led the girl out into the open from the back door. His mother waved at them and smiled tenderly, knowing that with Jack around, Merlinda was sure to be safe. "Take good care of each other!" she called out to her two children._

_Jack grinned back mischievously. "Don't worry. We will!"_

Little did they know, the ice in the nearby lake was very thin, and could break at any moment. The two went there to ice skate, as well as build a few snowmen at the endless pile of snow beside the lake. The memories were very focused on Merlinda, since, well, it was hers, to begin with. Tooth had heard about the same story from Jack's side, but never did she see it from his sister's eyes.

_It started when the ice on the frozen lake started to crack around little Merlinda's feet. The young girl gasped in fear and froze, her large eyes starting to dart between the cracking ice at her feet and her beloved brother, who was trying to coax her out of her predicament. Her feet refused to respond._

"_J-Jack… I'm scared…"_

_Her tiny voice encompassed all the fear she had in her. She knew that if she fell, she would die, even if her brother did manage to pull her out of the lake._

_Jack tried another method to reel her in. He didn't dare to come any closer, lest he weakened the ice even more and instead of saving Merlinda, they would both plunge to their deaths. "Okay… We're going to have some fun! This is just like hopscotch. Try to avoid the cracks… and you win when you manage to make your way to me!"_

_The little girl's shoulders tensed as she tried moving towards where her brother was, where he was standing on thick, solid ice. "One…"_

_Seeing that it had worked, she tried again. "Two..."_

"_Three!" Jack yelled, using his staff to hook the girl's waist and pull her in to safety. The girl's expression promptly became a mask of surprise as she landed in a pile of snow. Giggling, she looked up at her brother, who smiled back at her. He didn't realise that he had traded places with the girl due to the momentum and the slipperiness of the ice. All the girl could do was to watch in abject horror as he fell through the ice and into the frozen lake. She screamed his name multiple times, tears streaming down her numb face and even pounded at the ice with her tiny fists (which did absolutely nothing) and demanded for her brother to be returned to her. Nothing happened. When she couldn't take it anymore, she blanked out and collapsed, knowing that it was her fault that she caused Jack's death. She never gave herself a second chance after that incident and hated the winter, for all her good memories were buried and all that left was a painful, searing scar that ached in her mind whenever she thought about the cold._

_The scene shifted a final time to reveal a young woman in a long, black dress with eyes as void as the shadows themselves. The woman's looked around the vast green field, making sure that she was secluded, before raising her hands into the sky. She said a few incomprehensible words and rotated her hands in the air. A bolt of lightning struck down on the field next to her and although the grass was clearly fried from her stunt, she didn't flinch. "Jack…" the woman mumbled sadly as she gazed at the grass. "Your spirit isn't there anymore… Where are you?"_

With a jolt, Tooth realized that she was looking at a grown-up Merlinda._ I never knew she would not overcome her grief after all those years… And what did she become… a sorceress, just to bring him back from the dead?!_

_The woman tried again. This time, the grass withered and the earth erupted as skeletal hands clawed their way out to the surface, chrunin the ground and kicking up soil. She screamed in despair at her failed attempts, not knowing that her brother had long become a spirit, and was chosen to be a Guardian._

"_Why… Why!" the woman growled in fury. "This isn't supposed to happen! Give him back!" Her voice rose to become a feral scream as the skeletal army dispersed into dust crumbled away, scattering in the relentless wind that suddenly blew when she screamed. She had been a sorceress of dark magic for five years now and she still couldn't do anything to bring her brother back. All the intensive research she had done came back to her as a zero._

"… _Fine. Be that way. If he can't join me, then I'll go to him!"_

_Merdinda unsheathed a three-foot long dagger from her belt and plunged it into her heart._

With that, the mist quickly contracted into a tiny whirling sphere again, the scene of Merlinda lying in the brown earth in a puddle of her own blood fading rapidly. Tooth didn't realise what had happened after Jack had died. She had also unknowingly put her hands over her mouth in shocked silence. The female Guardian hovered in the air for a few minutes where she last saw the girl's final moments.

"Me-Medusa…" she whispered hoarsely in horror.

Something lunged at her from behind, knocking her down as the delicate sphere fell from her hands, violently jolting her senses back to reality. The sphere shattered and white mist dispersed into the air. Intense pain flared though Tooth's shoulder blades where her wings were attacked. She gasped in pain and turned to face her assailant. To her absolute horror, just as she thought that the situation couldn't be any worse, she turned to face the enemy she feared most. After being sealed away by the Man in the Moon centuries ago, he managed to break free. Lyacon's jaws slavered and frothed, dripping with Tooth's blood where he struck her.

"H-How…?" Tooth managed to mutter in shock and fear as she struggled to rid herself of his grasp.

Lyacon's wolfish face twisted into a cruel smirk. "Ah, Queen Toothiana… Your Palace isn't as well-defended as compared to the past. You've become foolish. Foolish, indeed, to let down your guard! I could even sneak in here and destroy you now. I will finally obtain the revenge I have been waiting for so many centuries and Pitch will be delighted to know that you weren't able to spread… Your little discovery."

"No!" Tooth managed to gasp as her enemy curled a clawed hand around her feathered neck. With a laugh, he started to squeeze the air out of her. She pounded against him, kicking furiously, fighting back, but it was futile. Her vision started to blur and spots danced before her eyes. It wasn't long before she blacked out from the lack of oxygen.

Lyacon bounded out of the room and locked the door, effectively trapping Tooth's body in there. He knew that even if he had suffocated her, she wouldn't die, since the only way to kill a Guardian was to prevent children in the world from believing in them. The best he could do was to try to keep her locked in her own Palace for eternity, and there was a chance that she would stay that way forever, since the room she was in was long forgotten by the rest. The wolf king smirked and let out a howl out triumph when he successfully snuck out of the Palace.


	11. Chapter 10- Coming of the Storm

**The Dark Army**

**Summary: **Is Pitch Black really gone for good? What if he comes back, more powerful than before, with a new army of darkness, one that the Guardians had never expected? What if a new Spirit is chosen to be a Guardian, but had become one of Pitch's allies? How will the Guardians convince her to join them instead? My first fanfiction, so I'm still an amateur. If there is anything I can improve in, please tell me.

**Author's Note: **Apparently, homework is still out to get me… I hoped to update this sooner but I kind of got caught up in my studies (even though it's during the holidays!), was updating my other fanfic and got writer's block when thinking up of ideas for this chapter. So, I suppose it's my fault for not keeping on schedule. On a different note, yay! More reviews! Thanks to everyone who supported me and patiently put up with my slow updates! :D

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians or The Guardians of Childhood.

* * *

** Chapter X: Coming of the Storm**

Pitch gave his commanders a sinister smile as he watched the Guardians fleeing from the brainwashed Jack before moving silently back to his lair. His plan was finally coming to fruition. With his enemies confused and scattered and at his mercy, no one would be able to stop him.

Right before he vanished into the shadows, a lone wolf messenger scampered to him, it's mouth frothing and tongue lolling from its over exerting itself. It panted heavily, the light so dim so that Pitch couldn't make out its exhausted scarred features, before finally delivering its message.

"Lord Lyacon has imprisoned Toothiana. He will join the Shades in the final assault to finally bring a new Dark Age."

Pitch nodded, dismissing the wolf. This was going even better than he initially thought. The memory keeper was out of commission, and he had both Jack and Medusa on his side, not to mention the army of Shades he had gathered to take the entire world in one fell swoop.

_Moreover..._ He smirked as he glided along the dungeon cells of his lair.

The Prophet, or more commonly known as the Lady of the Lake, Rivienne, was trapped in there, chained and shackled, her bonds running deep into the stone ground. Her power of foresight was more useful than he would give credit for. Her features, once beautiful, we're badly mutilated by several burns and wounds, a chunk of her nose and an eye forcefully ripped out and replaced by raw muscle and bone. Her clothes were torn to rags, her exposed limbs chained and shackled and forced to endure the relentless cold that the cells offered. Her silver mask, bloodied and torn, lay on the ground as a testament to her recent battle with the Shades. It was a battle that she had lost. Utterly.

"Fool! I foresee the future! You will perish." The Lady hissed at the Boogeyman through the iron bars and pulled at her chains. When he slipped into the cell and got close to her, she nearly clawed the flesh out of his face, making him jump back in surprise at her show of aggression.

Pitch gave her an annoyed sound as a response after he had collected himself. "You will know your place when I'm done with you, O great Prophet. Moreover, you only see _possibilities_, not the future. I know you have seen a vision where I have won. Tell me about it." With a sneer, he scrutinised her ruined face, slowly finding growing traces of doubt and maybe even despair on her features. So he _was_ right. She did have a glimpse of a future where he had won.

The Lady spat at Pitch's feet, her face masked by rage, much to his disgust and annoyance. "No… Never! You will not prevail!" she declared coldly as Pitch clasped his hands behind his back and slowly glided around her, surveying her like she was a trophy.

Then, in one fast, fluid motion, shadows gathered around his suddenly raised hand as he drew his whip and struck at the Lady, opening yet another deep gash right down her back. So forceful was the blow that Rivienne was thrown forwards before the chain snapped her back in place. She crashed on to the floor with a pained gasp, suddenly finding Pitch's clothed foot on her wounded back, pushing her down on to the ground.

The Nightmare King, still keeping his foot on her, knelt down and yanked the neck of her rags and pulled her mutilated face towards his. "Let this be a warning. You will obey your King," he whispered harshly into her ear before letting her up. He cast a final sneer at Rivienne's broken figure before leaving in a pool of shadow.

The army was massing. His commanders were already impatient. It was time he initiated the final strike.

Trembling slightly from the ordeal, the Lady slowly got to a kneeling position and finally allowed her tears to fall. She started to murmur, her lips moving and hands clasped together like she was saying a prayer.

"Please… Please, save us, Guardians of Childhood…"

* * *

"Sandy! We gotta do somethin' to shake 'im off our tails!"

"Not all of us have tails, Bunny!"

"Oh, quiet, North! I meant figuratively..."

"Oh, really? Whoops..."

The Sandman nodded in affirmation at Bunny's first statement, knowing that this was the Jack that they had been searching for all those months. He could see that, somehow, Jack was corrupted, and he had a good feeling about the cause of his corruption. Jack's eyes were devoid of any emotion, and he could see swirling orbs of black in his red irises - Nightmare Sand.

_Quick, grab him!_

He channeled a huge wave of Dreamsand to overwhelm the Guardian of Fun, as well as to use to use it to combat the Nightmare Sand. North and Bunny lunged forward at that but still struggled to keep the thrashing Guardian pinned down. It hurt all of them to see Jack like this, bringing forth flames that shot towards nowhere in a futile attempt to break out, though Jack could feel their grip loosening ever so slightly. He continued to squirm.

_Almost there... _With every passing moment, Sandy could see North and Sandy losing their hold on Jack. He started to work faster. The Dreamsand was in Jack system already, combating the Nightmare Sand in his mind, soul and heart. As he cured more of him, Jack struggled more violently.

"Mate..." Bunny's warning tone made Sandy realise that they were all in a more precarious position than he thought.

He found the eye of the storm in Jack's heart. Figures. He should've known. This would be an uphill battle as the Nightmare Sand had affected that area the most. Sandy concentrated harder than ever, destroying the Nightmare Sand using sheer willpower. Just as he almost undone the curse, Jack broke free and dashed towards him. North and Bunny tried to stop him but the ever-so-clumsy Guardian of Wonder tripped over a rock in the tunnel, knocking into Bunny, who gave a surprised yell, as well as some colourful cursing, and earning themselves a tumble.

_No!_ Sandy's eyes widened but he knew he couldn't give up now. The curse was about to be torn by its roots and he would stop at nothing to ensure that Jack would be alright. He shut his eyes and continued the internal battle, while Jack rapidly raced towards him, a huge fireball blossoming in his hands.

The corrupted Guardian bore down on the tiny Sandman, his smirk triumphant. He then brought his flaming hands down on Sandy's head and-

Collapsed, suddenly convulsing and breathing rapidly for a few seconds before laying completely still.

_Jack!_

The Sandman checked on the unconscious Guardian, beckoning North and Bunny, who got back up from the tumble they took. On the outside, Jack didn't seem like he was hurt at all, physically. However, whatever that was going on _inside_ him was the worrying thing. Jack's face contorted in agonising discomfort, his mouth open in a silent, tortured, scream as he thrashed. He bit on his lip so hard that it bled, much to the Guardians' horror.

Shadows started to envelop him, seemingly making him even more tortured. The others, whose efforts to calm his thrashing figure were futile, watched in apprehension and with hitched breath, hoping feverently that their beloved ally would come back to them safely.

Then all of a sudden, the shadows dispersed as quickly as they gathered around him, and as he was thrown violently backwards down the tunnel, his appearance slowly reverted to his usual self: fluffy white hair, blue hoodie, frost-covered staff, the like.

Bunny, North and Sandy let out the breath they had been holding and chased after the fallen Guardian. Jack was unconscious, but he didn't have that conflicted expression or was moving around any more. In fact, in Bunny's opinion, he looked pale and... _dead_, which wasn't possible. He checked Jack's heartbeat, though, just to be sure.

"Frosty's fine," Bunny announced, and North nodded. The leader of the Guardians picked Jack up gently and motioned for his comrades to continue down the tunnel. "To Tooth's Palace. Hurry!"

* * *

A certain intricate orb swirling with a black substance cracked ever so slightly, darkness spilling out of its fragile surface. Then more cracks spread throughout the entire surface and the orb started to vibrate, becoming more violent by the second before it exploded in a burst of pitch black and dark red.

* * *

"Ugh… Ow… Where…?"

A soft groan escaped Queen Toothiana's lips as she slowly sat up on the dusty floor of the chamber. As she regained her bearings, her foot brushed against the shattered remains of her memory-seeing sphere, much to her horror. Suddenly, everything rushed back to her. The truth about Medusa, Lyacon's attack… Everything. She dashed to the door and tried to open it, only to find out that it was locked. The werewolf must've locked her in, she realised.

"Oh no… But I have to tell them about the truth! Especially Jack!" Panicking, she tried to find a way out of the situation she got herself into but to no avail. Lyacon must've known that the other Guardians would've forgotten about this room, and so he decided to seal her in her own palace, keeping her hidden from the rest when she was in truth right under their noses. She gulped, thinking about the duties that she would abandon if she could not escape the room, and that, in turn, would cause the children to stop believing in her as the mini fairies would be too disorganised without her to guide them in their tooth-collecting heists.

_Unless…_

Unless if her mini fairies could actually find her. They were a part of her, after all, especially Baby Tooth, who had bonded with her more than the others. If she could somehow harness that inherent connection she had with her helpers, they could help her get out. It seemed easy, but… _How?_ First of all, how to contact them while she was stuck in the room? And, secondly, none of them knew where the key was, so they still couldn't free her. The other option was to contact the other Guardians, but, as of now, they were all facing a crisis. It would be childish of her to send a distress call to them all because she was _stuck in a room._

Tooth slumped against the wall of the chamber and sighed dejectedly. What should she do…


	12. Chapter 11- Loyalty

**The Dark Army**

**Summary: **Is Pitch Black really gone for good? What if he comes back, more powerful than before, with a new army of darkness, one that the Guardians had never expected? What if a new Spirit is chosen to be a Guardian, but had become one of Pitch's allies? How will the Guardians convince her to join them instead? My first fanfiction, so I'm still an amateur. If there is anything I can improve in, please tell me.

**Author's Note: **I mean to put this up on Christmas but I wasn't really given the opportunity to. Please consider this as a belated Christmas and an early New Year's update! I really appreciate all the reviews I am receiving so far and am glad to see people enjoying this fanfic. Hopefully you'll like this chapter too!

Review responses:

**Apollo Holmes**: Ah, yeah. But that's how school shows us its hospitality. (I think I've been ranting too much about it…)

**Nick**: I'm happy that you like it! You'll see what happens to Tooth here.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians or The Guardians of Childhood.

** Chapter XI: Loyalty**

Apparently, it worked.

Tooth hadn't thought about it much, but since the mini fairies were extensions of herself, she could actually talk to them telepathically. Normally, she would've just talked to them during their usual tooth heists, and wouldn't think of any other ways to communicate.

Ever since she was stuck in her chamber, she had tried everything she could to get out of there. She tried screaming and yelling until her throat was sore, banging on the metal door, which only hurt her delicate fists, and even ramming against it brutally in an attempt to break it. All she got was a very large and angry bruise which formed on her shoulder.

She wished she had her tweezers to pick the lock.

Tooth hadn't noticed how much time had passed since she was trapped. The fact that she was rendered useless made her want to scream again, this time in frustration.

_If only my fairies could hear me..._ Tooth thought to herself. _Hey, girls? If you can hear me, I'm trapped in the memory chamber. Send help..._

Was it just her, or did she hear numerous sounds of squeaks and chatters in her head?

"I must be going crazy..."

She got back to trying to barge through the door after convincing herself that she was just hearing things.

"Toothy!"

Tooth jumped into the air in surprise and pounded on the door. "North, I'm here!" She couldn't believe it. Maybe the telepathic connection between her and her fairies did work. Either that, or she got a lucky break.

_Tooth? Are you alright? _Baby Tooth's voice resonated in her head, soft at first but slowly became more audible. Her squeaks were laced with slight concern and worry for her. Tooth smiled tenderly at that. _Don't worry. North, Bunny and Sandy are going to get you out of there._

A few minutes later, the metal door was blasted open. Twin boomerangs cleaved through the open doorway as Bunny, always looking for action, bounded into the room. He narrowed his green eyes and glanced around suspiciously before laying his eyes on Tooth. "Aye, Sheila! You're here!"

North and Sandy gazed at her in concern as Baby Tooth flew over to perch on her shoulder. "You're hurt," the leader of the Guardians noted, noticing the bloody wound at her back where she has been slashed by Lyacon's claws. Looking past Bunny, she noticed a certain winter spirit being suspended in the air by Sandy's Dreamsand. "Jack!" she gasped.

"Come, Toothy. Let's go up and then we can discuss about what happened here, as well as Jack." North's expression of relief held something darker under the surface. Tooth nodded, waiting for a few fairies in the medic department to apply the medication on the gash and bandaging the best they could before they flew away, chattering in relief.

She let out the breath she had been holding. "Right. Let's go. I'll have to explain everything to you as well. I found out something very important."

* * *

The Guardians were all crowded in the sick bay in the north turret of Tooth's Palace, around Jack's prone figure which rested comfortably on the heaps of pillows and colourful sheets. The room, empty, except for them, was painted bright orange and yellow, which reminded them of a beautiful dawn; a reminder of the end of the Dark Ages and dawn of a new Golden Age to come. Bunny felt himself relax slightly in the atmosphere despite having been told about Medusa's troubling past and having the relieve the fight with the corrupted Jack.

"So, what you're sayin' is that the Sheila isn't evil despite her working for Pitch now?" Bunny was still very sceptical at Tooth's tale. She couldn't exactly blame him. All three male Guardians seemed shocked at the revelation.

"That's right. Jack needs to know about this," Tooth continued, serious. "Since they are related by blood, he may be able to make her remember some of her past with him."

North's thick brows furrowed. "But with Jack out of commission..." Sandy nodded in affirmation. There was really little they could do other than to recover from their ordeal and to wait for Jack to wake, if that was even possible. In the meantime, who knew what Pitch was planning in his lair. All of them knew the tight spot they were in.

Tooth sighed, tracing a finger across Jack's pale features gently before using a wet cloth to dab at his forehead. She really was worried for said winter spirit and cared for him like a mother despite the injuries she herself bore. Noticing her actions, the other Guardians understood that perfectly and excused themselves, leaving Tooth to tend for Jack. This conversation would have to wait. They needed to ensure the well being for the Guardian of Fun first.

* * *

Merlinda, by nature, was a passionate and kind person at heart. Those prominent traits that made her a person haven't left her when she was cursed to become a spirit.

Many people during her time considered witchcraft and forbidden magic to be taboo, an unforgivable sin, and those who dared to wield magic of any sort or are suspected to are hunted down and put to death on a burning stake. Those were the Dark Ages, where fear, rage and suspicion ruled the world. Yet, despite all the risks, Merlinda decided to learn dark sorcery anyway, for ever since she was nine, she discovered that she had the rare ability to see and speak with spirits, whether she believed in them or not. That was why she believed in the Guardians, or otherworldly creatures, in her brother's stories.

The idea came to her when she interacted with a certain dark spirit, immensely powerful at that time due to the chaotic nature of humans, and begged him to take her in as an apprentice. The black-clad spirit outright refused at first, not wanting to deal with mortal affairs, but relented after taking the brunt of the little girl's pestering for weeks. Somehow, she had always managed to find him, even if he was hiding in the shadows. _Especially _when he was hiding in the shadows. That fact alone was enough to make even the Boogeyman intrigued in her unusual abilities, which was almost the sole reason why he took her under his wing.

And so, Pitch Black had already started shaping Medusa's future even before she died.

Surprisingly, his lair withheld a large collection of books on dark magic and sorcery, something that he had only started to dabble in recently, before the Battle of Belief. That was how he found a way to convert Dreamsand into Nightmare Sand. She used those books to learn how to draw energy from the night, darkness and negative human emotions. Sometimes, to help her gain enough energy to cast a withering hex over a large area, Pitch would cause misery to either spirits or innocent people, though she never liked that. Her heart was still pure, despite the fate she had chosen.

At the age of eleven, she started learning the art of necromancy.

She was scared, so very scared of the shadow-like spirit who forced her to make more and more undead armies to terrorise the lands. It broke her heart to see her being the cause of so many peoples' suffering. All she wanted to do was to revive her brother, which Pitch didn't care, to say the least.

Two years later, she rebelled against her former Master, unable to carry the guilt with her any longer. She confronted him about the loss of lives, which he waved aside nonchalantly. It made her contained rage _explode _outwards and her unwavering fury fuelled the mindless massacre that followed in the village they were in - which sadly was her hometown - including her own parents, much to her horror. He emerged victorious, leaving her heartbroken and defeated as she ran away from him, from her destiny, from herself.

The rest of her life was spent in solitude. She delved deeper into her obsession of necromancy more than before, her single-minded thoughts of reviving her brother the only thing that would be her salvation and atonement.

She died, and now, she had become Pitch's pawn again.

Not that she knew. The Boogeyman was very cautious when telling her about her past, while telling her about her gifts and sorcery, he never mentioned her rebellion against him, or her true identity as the sister of the one she seemed to hate most. He managed to cook up a believable past for her to trust in, and while he did tell her some parts of the truth, he had also planted many lies in his story. He had learnt his lesson from the Battle of Belief and would stop at nothing to not let her past leak.

Pitch had thought of everything he could to make Medusa be a loyal asset, but he had missed out one important thing that was embedded in human nature.

Curiosity.

Ever since Jack's revival and Tooth's bold rescue mission to save North - quite impressively, she must admit - she had started to doubt her Master's plan in taking the entire world using the large army of Shades. She kept her thoughts to herself, but they had started to take root in her and fester, almost like a disease. She did what Pitch had asked of her, every single command, and while her comrades were more than happy to carry to carry out his plans, she hadn't felt any satisfaction in it at all. It was so... _strange_.

When she watched the corruption of the frost spirit, she felt a twinge of horror, and a wave of guilt swept over her, making her feel nauseous... As well as an indescribable feeling about him. It felt like her guts were twisted into knots every time she had seen his tall, lanky figure. It was almost like she yearned for him. For some reason, she could also sense when he was reversed of his corruption, and felt immense relief for his freedom. She felt some incoherent connection to him.

_... Do I want freedom too?_

_Wait... Why am I even thinking about this?! This is wrong! What's happening to me?!_

Swatting aside an annoying green python from her head that strayed too close to her face -as if it knew about Medusa's inner turmoil!- Medusa slithered past dungeons of wailing victims subjected to various types of torture, unable to ignore the pang of pity she felt for them, as well as the secret admiration for those who were able to resist it. She knew after observing these spirits that there was very little hope of them resisting the corruption. Once they had succumbed to fear for a certain amount of time, or if their sense of fear was too strong, they would lose their minds and become part of the chaotic army of Shades. Offhandedly, she wondered if Pitch would do the same to her if she ever defied him. Would her comrades side her? Rather unlikely.

Wait. Did she just... Think about _betraying her Master_?

"Arrgh! What is wrong with me?!" she yelled out loud in frustration, earning terrified glances from the pitiful spirits trapped in their cells. She glared at them, making them turn away quickly.

"... My, what unsightly behaviour. I am deeply disappointed in you, my dear."

"Go away, Apophis."

The ancient cobra slithered up to the female humanoid from behind, and hissed into her ear. "Some say that the eyes are the windows to the soul. You can never hide your true emotions in there..." He wrapped his red coils around her black ones and slowly turned her around, gazing into the dark green pools of her irises, seeing that she was momentarily stunned at his words. He flicked his forked tongue over her ear playfully, before purring, making that deep rumble in his throat, his eyes narrowing at her. "Do you know what I see?"

Breaking out of her stupour, Medusa shot Apophis a venomous look and backhanded his face away, her nest of pythons swarmed over his looming face with bared fangs, attempting to protect their 'mistress'. "Don't touch me, you savage."

The ancient snake recoiled, letting out a surprised and irritated hiss, but he still set his hypnotising eyes on hers. A small smirk slowly formed on his reptilian features. "I would've expected no less than that, my dear. You're afraid. You fear to face your true feelings about Pitch, about the Guardians, about this whole impending war. You have grown soft on the enemy. Moreover I, too, know about the look that you give to our prisoners." He paused and glanced at the cells with a seemingly bored expression. "I don't see why you should care about those pathetic spirits..."

"... Stop that, Apophis." Medusa's calm facade was seeing some faults. She bit her lip, hard enough to draw blood.

"Watch yourself, _dear_." He rolled that word on his tongue, making it sound exotic, yet menacing and dangerous at the same time. Medusa shuddered slightly at the sound before catching herself. "You are starting to have doubts in our cause. Perhaps you would like to switch sides instead? Join the Guardians and turn against us?"

Medusa continued to stare at him, and now it was very, very, difficult to mask the unease in her eyes. Apophis could read her like an open book. "Shut up, Apophis. You don't know me at all. I will always be loyal to my Master." It was a blatant lie. Even Apophis knew. He smiled.

"You know as well as I do that you find some fault in the past that Pitch told you. Why would you be interested in necromancy of all things? What purpose does it serve? Despite your unusual abilities, you were not a born witch. Why pursue dark magic? You could very well be killed for that. Those are the questions that were in your mind for some time, am I right?" Apophis gazed at her intensely, watching her every reaction to his words. And he was satisfied at the results. Medusa was becoming more and more unnerved by his words. Her eyes darted around nervously, and though he tried to seek them she would refuse to make eye contact with him.

"If Pitch indeed did lie to you, what would you do? Demand the truth from him? Betray him? You are no more than a mere servant to him. You're a redundant asset that he just keeps in this hole that he calls a lair. You. Are. Nothing. But I... I can give you so much more. Power. Truth. Companionship. That is what you want. Would you continue to trust the Boogeyman?"

"Shut up. Shut up. SHUT UP! What you are saying is ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS!"

She had to get away from him. He knew too much about her inner thoughts. Perhaps he knew everything about her. But when he wrapped his coils around her own body, she started to panic. She was trapped in his huge bulk. Even her coils were crushed under his superior weight. She struggled desperately, eyes darting to find a way to escape.

"I will tell the Nightmare King about this is you do not yield to me. You are such a small thing. So delicate... And so easily broken." He started squeezing her body in a death grip, muscles and sinew rippling under the surface of his slippery, scale-covered skin. Medusa did believe that he could crush her without effort. She found herself gasping for breath before the snake eased his grip over her body.

"Why... Why are you suddenly so interested in this? Why are you... Doing... This?!" she gasped, her struggles futile.

He smirked at her. "Perhaps I do want to overthrow the Nightmare King and take the world for my own. It is such a pity to just let pretty little horses pillage the consciousness of humans when you can just exterminate all life and bring chaos. And of course, I can't deny that I've had my eye on you as well. You would make a fine Queen to rule by my side. This is just a small demonstration of my power. By using King of Nightmares like a pawn, I can bring this world to its knees! And now I shall offer you a proposal: Join me or perish painfully."

"You're sick," Medusa spat, disgusted. Apophis' expression hardened.

"Very well, then."

Apophis struck at her so quickly, her eyes couldn't follow it. All she heard was a loud sound of muscles and sinew ripping, and the sight of her own thick, dark red blood spurting out of her arm, as well as the snake's fangs embedded into her soft flesh, slowly moving his head down the length of her limb, tearing at the skin and bloody insides. It felt like two knifes were sliding down her arm and she heard a scream, shocked that the voice belonged to her. She shuddered violently in agony, as Apophis extracted his fangs.

"Do you want more, _dear_?" The snake was grinning sadistically, his bloodstained fangs seemingly black in the darkness of the lair.

Rage filled her mind, combined with the fear and intense pain. She gritted her teeth and forced herself to look straight into his eyes. Her breath was ragged and it took a great deal of concentration to retaliate. However, soon, a pair of glowing green eyes cleaved straight into his pupils.

"Pitch will understand why I am doing this, and I refuse to be a part of your plans anymore! Moreover, I certainly trust him more than I trust you, you monster!"

Apophis' eyes widened in horror as he realised what she was doing. He was turning into stone.

Medusa used what energy she could muster to escape from the snake's grip, which had slacked a great deal. She was in time, too. Any second later and she would've turned into stone herself because she had maintained physical contact with him.

As she stared at the statue of Apophis in abject revulsion and horror, she could not but help to think about his last words about Pitch.

_"Would you continue to trust him?"_

Medusa didn't physically answer to that, but in the deepest recesses of her mind, a tiny voice said," _No._"

Then she tore a generous piece of her black dress to wrap around her (very) large wound, stifling tears in the process, before swiftly turning tail and slithering away as fast as she could.

As Medusa rounded a corner, a hoarse voice stopped her in her tracks. She turned towards the particular dungeon where she was called to, peering into it, though her eyes were blurry from the sheen of moisture over it.

Rivienne, despite her mutilated features and torn clothes, stood tall, staring back at her regally. She looked like a queen bound in chains. Medusa crept closer to her bars tentatively, biting her lip to stop the tears from flowing. No. She would absolutely _not_ cry in front of the Lady of the Lake.

"... What is it, Rivienne?" Medusa cursed herself for letting her voice waver. It was so weak and pathetic of her.

The Prophet regarded the snake-lady solemnly, sadness lingering in the irises of her greyish-blue eyes. "I heard about your exchange with the old snake. If you want, _Medusa..." _Said snake-lady tensed. The Lady was saying her name like she was issuing a challenge to her. "If you are brave enough to face the truth, I will tell you everything. I see all, and I know that before you died, you weren't the person you are now."

Medusa's breath caught in her throat. Her eyes were hungry for an explanation, any at all. "Tell me."

And told her she did.


End file.
